After barely sneaking by a Division II opponent in its nonconference finale, UTSA brought a different energy to Thursday night’s Conference USA opener against UTEP.

Junior Byron Frohnen could feel the intensity as the players hyped each other up in the locker room before the game.

And it showed as the Roadrunners burst out of the gates with 13 unanswered points and never trailed in a 75-60 victory over the Miners.

“We came ready to play,” Frohnen said. “We knew it was a whole new season for us. We needed this win, bad. Especially on our home court. Every home-court conference game is huge. We were just more locked in more than them, I guess, and put a big number on them.”

In front of 1,218 in the Convocation Center, UTSA played with a greater intensity than it did in Saturday’s lackluster 70-67 victory over Southeastern Oklahoma State before a crowd of 812.

“We knew a lot of people were going to come out and watch the game, so we were focused,” sophomore Keaton Wallace said. “We knew it was conference play, so we have to play our best basketball right now.”

The Roadrunners (7-7) held the Miners to 34.0-percent shooting for the game. Before the final five minutes, UTEP had hit just 12-of-42 (28.6 percent) from the field.

The Miners (5-7) also had 18 turnovers.

“I just feel like our team defense was totally locked in tonight,” Frohnen said. “If we can play defense like that every game of the year, I think we’d go undefeated.”

Wallace led UTSA with 23 points, spearheading a group of four Roadrunners in double figures.

“We can’t be a two-man show offensively. We know that,” Roadunners coach Steve Henson said. “That’s the only way we’re going to have a chance to be really good, is if we have a bunch of guys clicking offensively. We take care of the basketball, get more people involved. Jhivvan and Keaton are going to have big nights most nights. We need to be a better offensive team.”

Both teams were impacted by foul trouble. UTSA point guard Giovanni De Nicolao fouled out, while Frohnen and Jackson each finished with four.

For UTEP, Evan Gilyard, the team’s leading scorer who had only 14 points, played with four fouls for the majority of the second half.

“We knew he was a liability on defense because he had four fouls, so we were trying to attack him,” Wallace said.

Efe Odigie had scored 19 points with 16 rebounds for the Miners, while Nigel Hawkins led the waywith 21 points.

UTSA outscored UTEP 38-22 in the paint. Frohnen said he tried to take advantage of mismatches by driving around bigger defenders or using his physicality to get to the rim when the Miners switched a guard onto him in screening situations.

The success inside helped the Roadrunners overcome a 28.6-percent shooting night from beyond the arc.

“When our 3s aren‘t fouling, we always preach to attack the rim, and that was working tonight, too,” Frohnen said. “Everyone is coming together. The locker room is feeling different. Everyone is feeling together as one, and it’s showing on the court. We’re playing with unity, and it feels good.”

After UTSA took an early lead, UTEP pulled as close as six points and trailed 33-24 at halftime. The Roadrunners scored the first eight points of the second half behind a pair of Jackson 3-pointers and led by double figures the rest of the way.

The two teams will play a rematch at 8 p.m. Saturday in El Paso.

“We had a good win tonight,” Wallace said. “We know when we go back to play at their house, it’s going to be tough. We know they’ve been having good crowds. We’re just going to have to do it again.”